EvieWe were both avoiding what was really going on. I refused to acknowledge it. I wanted to pretend we were on a normal date for as long as possible. We laughed and played and joked with each other as we strolled over several blocks of Hollywood stars before heading to the museum.“I think this is all a little creepy,” I told him after a while.“You don’t like being surrounded by wax figures staring at you,” he teased.“It’s giving me the heebie-jeebies.”He burst into laughter. “It is a little creepy. Cool but creepy. Do you want to check out some of the shops? We could go to the Dolby?”“Do you actually want to go shopping?” I questioned. I got the impression he was trying to make me happy, doing things that he thought I wanted to do as a way to appease me. I didn’t need appeasing.“I don’t mind browsing,” he answered.It wasn’t exactly an enthusiastic answer, but I would go with it. We spent a few more hours doing absolutely nothing except walking around and seeing all there was

XanderThis was probably one of the top ten dumbest things I had done in my life. In fact, it could be in the top five. I turned off the engine of my car but made no move to actually get out. I was still trying to talk myself into keeping the appointment I had made. I knew if I didn’t call and make an appointment, I would never actually follow through with it.I stared up at the building for several long minutes. I was a grown man. I was a successful, grown man. I should not be intimidated. I would not be intimidated. I could do this. I needed to do this. It wasn’t for me. It was for Charlie and his guys. One moment of humility would not kill me.I opened the car door and climbed out. My shoes felt like cement blocks as I made my way inside the building that was all too familiar. I followed the directions from the registry and made my way down the hall. I paused in front of his door and reviewed what I would say to the man that had tried to kill my dreams.“Fuck it,” I mumbled under m

Evie The GPS instructed me to turn right. The roads were ridiculously narrow. I was glad I had gotten the economy car at the airport instead of the midsize I had my eye on. I wasn’t sure I could have navigated the roads with anything bigger than the tiny tin can I was driving.“I can’t believe you are actually doing this,” Nelle’s voice floated through the car via the Bluetooth.“I have to. This isn’t for me. This is me doing a public service.”“Don’t you mean you are doing this because you are hoping to fix him so you can have him?”“No. That is not what I am doing. Me and Xander are over but that doesn’t mean I don’t care about him.”She let out an audible sigh. “You have such a big heart.”“I have a normal heart.”“Why don’t you turn your little self around and drive back to the airport? Come home and let’s talk this through.”“I’ll be home soon. Once I do this, I’ll feel better. It will be closure for me. It will give me what I need to move on, and hopefully, he will be able to m

XanderI was back. It wasn’t intentional. I told myself it was because my boat was here. That was all. I wasn’t back in Oregon because I felt drawn to the place. It was just the boat.Running away from home was not all it was cracked up to be. I missed Evie. I missed my house. I missed San Diego. I was a mess. I knew that. I was hot and cold, up and down, and everything in between.My head was a mess. I wanted Evie. I wanted her more than I wanted anything else. I just couldn’t bring myself to commit to living there. Being away from home had given me a sense of freedom I didn’t know I was missing. My life had been so focused for so long, I didn’t realize I wasn’t really living. Everything with Kade and Evie made me rethink everything I had ever believed.I debated opening a beer. It was early afternoon, but I was on vacation. At least that was what I was telling myself. I was on an indefinite vacation. I heard my phone ringing and ignored it. But what if it was Evie? I scrambled into

EvieI pulled up the images from a sweet-sixteen party I had planned about six months ago before I turned my laptop for the new client to see.“Oh wow, that is stunning!” the mother exclaimed.“I don’t want pink,” the spoiled princess pouted.I smiled, remaining calm. “You don’t have to have pink. You can choose any color you want.”“No,” the mother quickly interjected. “We are not having black.”The girl scowled. “I wasn’t going to say black.”I kept my smile in place. The affluent family had reached out to me last week. Initially, I didn’t want to do it. I was in no mood to deal with a spoiled teenager.“What colors were you thinking about?” I asked.“Purple,” she answered. “I want several shades of purple.”“Oh, that’s very regal,” her mother said with a relieved smile. “I like it.”“I was at a party you planned for my friend like a year ago,” the young girl said. “She said you were really good. My party has to be better than her party.”Ah, teenage envy. “We will do our best.”“We